


to be Seen

by KeeperofSeeds



Series: femslashficlets - queer women’s lit [7]
Category: Jonathan Strange & Mr Norrell (TV)
Genre: Blanket Permission, F/F, Fairy Tale Curses, Feelings Realization, Hopeful Ending, Lost Hope (JSAMN), Period Typical Attitudes, Psychological Trauma, Romantic Friendship, Unrequited Crush
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2020-03-09
Updated: 2020-03-09
Packaged: 2021-03-01 05:15:30
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 338
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/23069824
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/KeeperofSeeds/pseuds/KeeperofSeeds
Summary: Emma Pole begins to dream of a better future, even while stuck in Lost Hope.
Relationships: Emma Pole & Arabella Strange, Emma Pole/Arabella Strange
Series: femslashficlets - queer women’s lit [7]
Series URL: https://archiveofourown.org/series/1596880
Kudos: 2





	to be Seen

**Author's Note:**

> 8 - when she looks at me / i float in a warm lake / feel my muscles go weak with want Pat Parker, My Lover Is a Woman

Emma’s feet ache with the dance. The familiar steps she traces night after night, the swirl of pale silks and masked faces making it almost easy to lose herself in the madness of it all. It would be easy, except for the arrival of Mrs Strange.

Emma catches glimpses of her during the dance, her face vacant, head thrown back as she laughs in false delight. The Gentleman pays her special attention, leading her in wide circles around the ballroom. Emma does not mind that. She would rather he not turn his eye to her. But her friend’s gaiety is false she knows. The switch must have been quick, and it must have clouded her mind. 

She thinks of these things during the long, slow days. She ponders how one might break through the veil over her friends eyes. She thinks of being seen, truly seen. Emma remembers the kindness in Arabella’s eyes during those early visit. She imagines seeing it again as they dance arm in arm in Lost Hope, twirling together too fast for any man or faerie to interrupt them or step in. What would it be like to want to dance again, to feel another’s arms around her? 

To be seen again by a woman like Arabella Strange. Such a thing might make her feel truly alive. To have such a dear companion at her side, who knows her pain and shares it in a way Stephen cannot. Emma feels an ache start in her chest. A longing. Her room feels especially empty this day, her bed even more so, but still she retires early. She imagines a larger bed, full of color and blankets, nothing like the pale Faerie world. She imagines Arabella beside her, both of them safe and whole, curled together in a self made safe haven, with muscles sore from activities other than dancing. Emma drifts off to Lost Hope that evening easier than usual. Her future dreams sustaining her soul and lending her strength in the never ending ball. 


End file.
